[quote}Also, what about seaweed? If I drag some home from the beach, should I wash it to remove salt?[/quote]
What I've heard is that you don't really need to wash seaweed that washes up on the beach. Just add it to your compost bin, or spread it as mulch.
Suggestions for FAQs on composting and soil?
We used to gather seaweed when I was a child and scatter it on the ground - but only after everything had been removed from the garden. The winter rains washed away the salt.
Anybody feel like helping to kick-start this FAQ project?
I think this is a FAQ project IN PROGRESS, now, as we speak!
Uh, I've been told that the inks currently used are no longer toxic to the compost piles....
PuddlePirate, I just read yesterday about some people having problems with fly larva (maggots) in their bins/piles. As a newbie, I don't have a clue. Is this a common problem & if so, have all you experienced composters figured out a way to deal with it?
Is it something worth adding to a FAQ Project?
What about this FAQ that I read in DG, but you rarely see in other composting info? I had no idea you could use compost when it wasn't completely broken down. All the pictures show stuff that looks like finely sifted black soil.
I have had the black Soldier Fly larvae (maggots) in some bags of coffee grinds I was holding for the compost pile. I was told to just dump 'em into the compost pile because they, like all the other little workers, would help aerate the decomp, and wouldn't hurt the pile at all.
It worked, and I never saw them again. Although, I did have a coupla big BLACK flies around for a minute. But a trusty swatter took care of that problem!
Uh, ya'll need visuals, so here's one!
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=4611737
Gymgirl, Black soldier flys aren't native around here but a couple of months ago I introduced about 100 of them to my pile (they're expensive! Sold here for reptile food because they are high in calcium). Over time there were fewer and fewer and then I could only find one. After a week they were back again. So somone survived and past on their genes. We're suppose to reach 110 by Sunday and I'm keeping my fingers crossed they will survive. They share the pile with regular fly maggots, of which I'm not thrilled but they do do the same job. They just bug us more later.
If you're determined to bet back flies in your compost, try these: http://www.naturescontrol.com/flyparasites.html
Question: I'm having to break down my eBucket garden for awhile. Is there any way to store the potting mix/homemade compost mixture I use to grow in? I truly hate the thought of having to dump all my hard-earned potting mix.
Q: What should NOT go into the heap?
A: Gravel, pebbles and stones. You may want to shred or mow your heap if sticks get into it.
Q: Can I add wood to my compost heap?
A: Don't put branches, sticks or even big twigs _directly_ into the active compost heap. Leaves and very fine twigs are OK.
Pile bigger twigs, sticks and branches separately. They will rot faster if compacted and damp, so break them up enough to lie flat, with saw, axe, hatchet or machete.
When you get enough sticks to be worth chipping, run them through a chipper or run over them several times with a lawn mower. Try to get them smaller than chips. Shreds will decompose faster than chips.
If you use a mower, let big sticks or branches soften and rot for a time before trying to chop them. The mower will tell you if they are too big or hard for it. You may have to cut branches into short lengths so the mower can "get's teeth into them". You'll probably have to stir a pile of sticks a few times so the mower can get at all of them. Wear long pants to avoid splinters.
You may want to sharpen your lawn mower blade before and after. Mower manufacturers will tell you that mowing anything but grass is unsafe, and they may be right.
Even when chipped or shredded, wood will decompose slower than almost anything else. You may want a separate, "slow" pile for composting woody. It will drain fast, so water at least as often as you water the "fast" heap. Periodically turn in some green, nitrogen-rich stuff to keep the C & N balanced. Also feed it some microbe-rich active compost from the regular heap to keep it innoculated. Wood is cellulose-rich and has very little N to support micro-organisms.
When the woody pile is mostly pre-composted, mix it into the regular compost heap, which it will tend to lighten and aerate. This might be a good time to screen out bigger chips that have not broken down. Throw them back into the stick-pile for more aging.
This way, you won't slow down the composting of your soft stuff, but still get the value of the carbon in the wood, a season or a year later.